Colorado
16-11,5-11Pac-12
Arizona
22-5,11-5Pac-12
Buffs Take Down No. 11 Arizona
February 23, 2020 | Women's Basketball
CU picks up first win against an AP ranked opponent since 2016
BOULDER – The Colorado women's basketball team has had its close calls this season against ranked opponents, but finally got over the hump on Sunday. The Buffaloes picked up their first win over an Associated Press ranked opponent since the start of the 2016-17 season, defeating No. 11/11 Arizona 50-38.
Defense was the name of the game at the CU Events Center. The Buffs held Arizona, who entered the day averaging 70.0 points per game, to the lowest scoring output by a ranked opponent in CU history. Colorado limited Arizona to 24.5 percent shooting (13-53), its lowest showing of the season.
The win pushes the Buffs to 16-11 overall in their final regular-season home game of the season. CU now sits at 5-11 in Pac-12 play and will close out the regular season on the road next week.
Freshman Jaylyn Sherrod led the Buffs with 12 points in the win. She also had seven rebounds and four assists, tying Shelley Sheetz for third on CU's freshman assist list with 142. Junior Mya Hollingshed snagged a career-high 13 rebounds to go with her eight points. Senior Quinessa Caylao-Do scored four points in her final regular-season home game.
Arizona drops to 22-5 on the season and 11-5 in conference play. Amari Carter led the Wildcats with 12 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Scoring came at a premium in the first half. The two teams each scored 19 points in the first half, flipping totals in the first and second quarters. CU led 11-8 after the first quarter. Arizona switched the totals in the second quarter, outscoring CU 11-8 in the second quarter.
The game got out to a slow start, seeing Arizona hold a 1-0 lead early on. Sophomore Peanut Tuitele registered the games' first field goal, putting CU up 2-1 at the 7:12 mark. Knight scored six points on 2-for-3 shooting in the quarter to lead the Buffs. She helped cap a 7-0 run to put Colorado up 10-5 with just under two minutes to go in the frame. Both teams shot 33.3 percent in the quarter with CU holding a 4-3 edge in field goals made.
Both teams struggled to get to the basket in the second quarter. Arizona tied the game at 11 to open the quarter, but that would be its only points for the next seven minutes. The CU defense held the Wildcats to an 0-for-9 streak and jumped out to a 15-11 lead. Most of the quarter's scoring came in the final 2:33 of the quarter. Arizona got back-to-back 3's from Sam Thomas and Helena Pueyo to tie the game at the half.
The Buffs took a step back in the third quarter. CU opened with an Emma Clarke jumper to take a 21-19 lead, but that was the lone lead of the period for the Buffs. CU turned the ball over seven times and got outscored 12-10 in the quarter. The Buffs tied the game four times in the quarter, but Arizona got late free-throws to take a 31-29 lead into the fourth quarter.
Knight got her offense going again in the fourth quarter, scoring the first four points to put CU up 33-31. The Buffs and Wildcats were tied at 35 with 7:34 to play when Aamir Carter hit a 3 to put the Cats up 38-35 with 6:35 to go.
That's when the Buffs buckled down. Caylao-Do drove to the basket, cutting the Arizona lead to one, 38-37, and Sherrod followed on the next possession to give the Buffs back the lead, 39-38. Hollingshed hit a 3-pointer, CU's first of the day, to give the Buffs a 44-38 cushion. Colorado powered to the finish with a 15-0 run in the final 6:11, sending Arizona home with the loss.
KEY MOMENT: Colorado went just 1-for-14 from behind the arc on Sunday, but the one was the biggest shot of the day. Hollingshed's 3-pointer gave the Buffs a six-point lead with 2:08 to go. It was the last field goal of the game as Arizona was forced to foul the rest of the way. CU finished 6-for-8 from the free-throw line in the final 1:08.
NOTES: The win was CU's first vs. an AP top-11 ranked team since upsetting No. 8 Oregon State, 68-65, in the 2015 Pac-12 Tournament (3/6/15)…It was CU's first win vs a ranked opponent (AP or WBCA) since No. 24 Miami (67-61, 11/18/17)…Arizona's 38 points were the fewest by a CU opponent since Prairie View A&M (38) last season (12/12/18)...Arizona's 19 points at halftime were also the fewest since holding Prairie View A&M to 12…CU was held to under 20 points in the first half for the first time since scoring 17 against Arizona State at the Pac-12 Tournament last season (3/7/19)…Knight's eight rebounds push her over 300 for her career (303)…Colorado outrebounded Arizona 48-27 (+21)…the Buffs doubled up Arizona in second-chance points, 14-7…CU still struggled from the free-throw line, shooting just 52.0 percent (13-25)…CU turned the ball over 16 times, leading to 16 Arizona points.
NEXT UP: CU closes out the regular season next week in Los Angeles. The Buffs will head to No. 8/7 UCLA and then finish up across town with Southern California on Sunday.
Quotes
Head Coach JR Payne
Overall thoughts
"I don't even know if I can find the words to express how proud of these guys I am. I always come in here and say that I am proud of them and I really am, no matter what the box score says, just because we have such a great group of young women on our team. The close games that we have been in and have not ended up winning, after every game we talk about what we should have [done] and what we are going to do differently. We have been in so many close games against top-10 teams that we haven't come out on top of. The coolest thing for me tonight was to watch our team grow before our eyes as the clock was ticking. They were doing the things that we talked about in our other close games. They are staying together and communicating in ways we have talked about. I am just wildly proud of these guys and so excited for them."
On Finally Closing Out A Close Game
"It is incredible and really hard to describe. I don't know if it would feel as good if we hadn't had such heartbreaking losses. To see us grow in ways we know we are capable of, and to really finish the game, was pretty awesome."
On Colorado's Defensive Performance
"We know that we are capable of being a great defensive ball club. Somebody just told us that this is the lowest point total in the history of Colorado basketball against a ranked opponent. 25 years ago, we held a ranked opponent (No.23 Kansas) to 44 points. It shows that we are really capable of defending. I think these guys will use that moving forward to know that when we need to get a stop and if we dig in and communicate, we really can get stops."
On What the Win Means for the Program
"It means a lot to us. It meant a lot to be at Stanford, when they were No. 6 in the country, and take them to overtime. It meant a lot when they were No. 8 in the country, and we should have had that game here and [ No. 8] UCLA here. All those games meant a lot for our growth as a program. To be able to finish one out and win it is huge. For these guys to do it on Senior Night, for a senior [Caylao-Do] that they really, truly love, is neat as well."
Redshirt Sophomore Aubrey Knight
On Applying What They Have Learned in Tough Losses to Today's Game
"I think it was huge. In the past games that we've had where we've lost close ones, the last five or so minutes we have not played very aggressively. We kind of shoot ourselves in the foot in that we aren't trying to make mistakes, and then we end up changing the trajectory of the game. In this game, I think we knew we needed to take smart shots and make stops. I think our defense is what did that today. We always talk about defense helps our offense. When we're playing good defense, it helps us out on the offensive end, and that's definitely what happened down the last stretch."
Junior Mya Hollingshed
On Her Late 3-Pointer
"I think it was a really big relief because I finally found a 3-pointer that went in. At the end there, I told the team that we couldn't breathe just yet and that we needed to finish out the game and get some key stops. We locked down defensively and made some free throws."
On Winning The Game For Quinessa Caylao-Do
"Coach [Payne] started today by saying that we wanted to play for Quinessa and everything she embodies. I think we took that to the heart, and we wanted to get a win for her on her Senior Night, especially because she's the lone senior. We all love Quinessa. We love her effort and her defensive energy. Yes, she doesn't score 20 points, but she does some key things that keep us in games, and she' just a smart player. Coach always talks about how calm she is. She does have this calm presence to her on the court that keeps everybody else focused and centered. I really appreciate that about her and I will miss that."
